DEVELOPMENT OF DILUTE PLUTONIUM ALLOYS
Plutonium is being studied as a substitute fuel for uranium-235 in alloys for high-temperatare use and for spike elements in power reactors. Alloys being studied include niobium-- plutonium, niobium-- plutonium-- silicon, niobium- - plutonium-- zirconium, thorium-- plutonium, and thorium-- plutonium-- zirconium. Binary alloys of niobium-plutonium show little promise as fuels since plutonium solubility in niobium was found to be negligible. Development of dispersion-type fuels consisting of a plutonium-silicon compound dispersed in a niobium matrix appears feasible on the basis of tentatively outlined phase regions in the niobium--plutonium-- silicon system. Niobium-plutonium-- zirconium alloys are found to consist of zirconium--plutonium alloy phases dispersed in a niobium- zirconium solid solution; the zirconium-- plutonium phases appear amenable to spheroidization by heat treatment. Plutonium is found to strengthen thorium as indicated by room-temperature hardness measurements, although a 10 wt.% zirconium addition to a thorium-- 10 wt.% plutonium alloy produces a greater hardness increase than does 30 wt.% plutonium. The recrystallization temperature of thorium--plutonium alloys is apparently below 650 deg C, 80 and 90% cold-reduced alloys recrystallizing within 1 min at this and higher temperatures. The addition of zirconium apparently increases the recrystallization temperature to above 700 deg C. (auth)
- Research Organization:
- Battelle Memorial Inst., Columbus, Ohio
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-92
- NSA Number:
- NSA-15-029690
- OSTI ID:
- 4842569
- Report Number(s):
- BMI-1532
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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